A Special Morning In The Pine Tree

Recently I spent the morning with my favorite little fuzz ball.  It was somewhat of a cloudy day but thankfully not a rainy day, well, right up until the end.  When I arrived there was my "girl" way up high in the pine tree, all alone.  When she saw me coming, she got behind the pine needle branch and there she kept her eye on me, hoping I couldn't see her.  You know, by this time though, I think both her and the Mom know me and the sound of my car. They still keep a sharp eye on me but after spending the morning with them this time, they are becoming more comfortable with my visits and the beeping of my camera.  I did tell you that they have very good eye sight and very good hearing.  They can actually hear their prey before they ever see it. So on this day, we just hung out and honestly, it was one of the best mornings I've had in a very long time. That baby is so cute and today she was in the mood to entertain, instead of just sitting...So there she is, up above, just waiting. Waiting for her Mom to come back, hopefully with a bit of lunch.

I wanted to give you more of a visual of where these two are living.  In order to get the owls with any magnification, I use a 150-500 lens.  I'm putting that on the Canon 7D MK11..with a crop factor.  I mostly shoot at 500 in order to get some nice close ups but for this photo, so that you could get some idea how big this pine tree is, I had the camera set at 150.  I wish I had gotten a shot of the entire tree so you could see how high up she is but I'm not even sure if my lens would take it all in...Maybe next time I'll bring a wide angle and get that shot.  For today though, you can see that the tree is wide, actually much wider than this, which I'll show you more of later.  Unfortunately I have never seen the baby come out or go into the nest. She is always on the branch when I arrive. Some days when I go, neither are there and because this is private property, I don't hang around.  So, this was her spot on this morning.  If you look above her and to the right you will see the nest.  It is quite large and when she is in it, I cannot see her at all.  It's the big brown blob sitting inside that circle of light, but it is also sheltered from the weather from above.  I'm pretty sure she is still walking the branches to get down to her limbs..but I don't really know for sure.  She could be practicing her flying a bit.

So there I am watching the baby, holding that big ass lens and across my right shoulder the Mom comes flying by...before I could move the lens and get to the 150 point on the lens, she had glided into that tree like a kid sliding into home base..It happened so fast, I never had a chance.  Look at her, all puffed out, thinking in her "owl way"..she can't catch me flying.  It's true, I have yet to get a photo of her flying..I did get the feathers all puffed out though.  I have never seen that before.  Now notice where she is standing on that branch.  It is quite a ways from where the baby is and she is right under the nest. Also she is very close to a bump in the branch which will become significant soon.  I wondered why she didn't go stand next to the baby but that became very clear later also.  I think she is so beautiful. 

This was the best part. This is the second year that I have watched and photographed a baby owlet.  Until this day, I had never seen the little one move.  She could stand on the branch for hours and just watch me. In the beginning she stays very close to the Mom, now the Mom is at the other end of the branch..My heart was in my mouth as I saw her slowly start to move towards her Mom..please little one, don't fall. Wings up a bit, I'm assuming for balance and off she went...

Lifting one little claw at a time, all the way over to her Mom..I was encouraging her the entire time...cheering her on like I do with the boys when they are learning something new...I was this little one's grandmother for a few moments in time..and I was so awe inspired by her bravery and courage.

Finally, she reaches her Mom...but notice where the Mom is now.  She has taken two steps to the right and lowered herself on the branch..she is now eye level with the little one. I was encouraging her but so was her Mom.  Standing so far away from the baby when she landed, forced the baby to walk, moving down on the branch now had a different meaning...

This is one of my favorite photo's of the two of them together..right after the baby reached the Mom..and the Mom knew she was safe, they both turned to me and posed, their very best pose so far.  Bright eyed and strong, standing side by side, saying "we are o.k."  thank you for being here to support us.  O.K. that is probably not what they were thinking, but this is my story and that's the version of it that I like...in some way though, they did acknowledge that fact that they were not afraid of my presence or the click of my camera anymore...and decided to do what they had to do without worry.

Now that the baby was safe, the Mom took a nap.  Not a long nap but I could tell she was exhausted..The baby was patient for awhile but not long enough...when at rest I noticed the Mom's ears fell down and rested with her.  When alert, her ears are always up.  These are the things I notice when I upload my photo's.  Such a joy to view these on the big screen after being with them.  I notice the little things once they are uploaded and I smile each time I discover something new about them.

The baby has been patient long enough...now she moves two steps to the right and starts to snuggle her Mom.  I swear she was giving kisses and the Mom ever so slowly, opened her eyes...who can really resist a baby snuggle and a little nip...

Fully awake now...I know why the Mom was so tired.  She had been hunting for the little ones lunch..there were photo's before this of course but I can't post them all.  The hunting process to my knowledge is, the Mom catches the prey, digest it and then regurgitates it to feed the baby.  This is what is happing here. When I enlarge this photo on my computer, I can clearly see the Mom's mouth open and the babies little beak inside the Mom's mouth.  It was fascinating to watch.  To me, this was the truth telling moment, that they were no longer afraid of my presence and did not have to keep a sharp eye on me every moment. This was the perfect Mothering Moment, that I have talked about so many times before in some of my other post. That Mom knew what she had to do for the little one and so she fed her.  Mothering moments in the wild are powerful. I am so full of gratitude for all the times I have been privileged to witness these tender moments. I add this one to my list now.  It explains so much how the bonds of Motherhood are so strange and instinctual and universal.  Nature is a testament to that.

Here's another thing that has no boundaries between the families in nature and our human families.  After spending a fair amount of time feeding the baby, once again the Mom is tired.  i swear that baby is so big now that she must have spent a good portion of the night hunting for her.  The Mom's tired, the baby is full and has lots of new energy...so what does she do...she harasses her Mom.  In this photo, she picking on the Mom's feathers and just being a brat...LOL...

Look at her pulling on her Mom's ear...I honestly had the best day with these two.  The baby was out to torture the Mom...but she was really just playing. I got the connection between the little one and little kids who just keep at their Mom's until the Mom gives in or moves on...poor Mom, one eye open, one eye closed...but who can sleep with someone biting on your ear...made my day..

So this Mom did what any self-respecting Mom would do and she moved away. Now the little one had to figure out how to get to her again...wings out..a first for this little one while I was there...Awesome, and she slowly moved down the branch to where her Mom was just standing..

Then this happened. Mom is deep in sleep.  The baby checks her out and maybe figures if she spreads her wings that will rattle the Mom...Well it didn't.  It did rattle me though.  Please baby don't attempt to fly while your Mom's asleep.  She wouldn't want to miss this great event if it were your first time...I didn't want to miss it either...but by now I had been there for many hours.  I have so many wonderful photo's from this day...more that I will share going forward.  More about this baby spreading her wings.  I did not get to see the baby fly.  That would have been the frosting on the cake. I do love that look on the babies face though..Like, wake up Mom.  I need to play or fly...

You know what I took away from this wonderful day with Mother Nature and all these Mothering Moments. Nature takes time.  Whether your going for a walk in the woods, or watching a family grow up in a pine tree. If we want to take it all in, we have to give it the time it deserves.  That's how we learn.  That's how we are amazed and that's how we know all is right with the world.  Not watching TV..not popping in for a few minutes.  It takes time.  I am so enriched by my time in the woods and in someone yards who shared her pine tree with me.  My friend gave me a gift by letting me take up space whenever I wanted to.  I took that time and I got lucky, because I stayed. I could have grabbed a couple of shots and left but then, look at what I would have missed. This was the highlight of my spring.  The flowers will come, the sun will shine, the ocean with it waves will be waiting for me..babies don't wait.  Babies are babies for such a short time. I knew I couldn't miss this...because who knows when I'll get another chance at seeing this little miracle of life happen again...many never get to see it at all.  So I say to you...take the time, be patient with your own little ones and with moments spent in nature.  You will always have the memories...but first, you have to make them...

I hope your enjoyed this little romp in the Pine Tree today.  I know it's a longer post than usual but what could I have left out....nothing my friends, absolutely nothing...

"The future will belong to the nature-smart-those individuals, businesses, and political leaders who develop understanding of the transformative power of the natural world and who balance the virtual with the real. The more high-tech we become, the more nature we need."  Richard Louv

Revival

 

March. I am beginning
to anticipate a thaw. Early mornings
the earth, old unbeliever, is still crusted with frost
where the moles have nosed up their
cold castings, and the ground cover
in shadow under the cedars hasn’t softened
for months, fogs layering their slow, complicated ice
around foliage and stem
night by night,

but as the light lengthens, preacher
of good news, evangelizing leaves and branches,
his large gestures beckon green
out of gray. Pinpricks of coral bursting
from the cotoneasters. A single bee
finding the white heather. Eager lemon-yellow
aconites glowing, low to the ground like
little uplifted faces. A crocus shooting up
a purple hand here, there, as I stand
on my doorstep, my own face drinking in heat
and light like a bud welcoming resurrection,
and my hand up, too, ready to sign on
for conversion.

Lucy Shaw

The Salem Diner

I love a good diner.  I always have. When I was little my Grandmother's sister and her friends owned a diner..It was always so much fun spending time there.  Fortunately for me, my friend Dina, loves a good diner also.  So often when we go out on our Friday morning jaunts, we might end up in a diner if we come across one.  This diner though, is special for so many reasons and I was just beside myself to be there.  I was amazed at how many memories it stirred up for me and how nostalgic it was. Truth be told, I should have been to this one a very long time ago..but another truth, I'm so happy we were there on this day.

The Salem Diner is a historic Sterling Streamliner diner. It's one of only two Sterling Streamliners left in New England, The other Sterling is in Rhode Island.  Sterling Streamliners were made by the J.B. Judkins Company of Merrimac, MA. They built diners from 1936 to 1942. It sits on it's original site on Loring Ave...just across from Salem State College.  I was born and brought up in Salem, but until Dina and I went there a few weeks ago, I had never been inside this diner.  After eating there and meeting the people, I must add it to my list of "should have done this sooner"...but then again, thankfully we made it before it was knocked down or fell down because it was really old in there but I was just so happy to be there.  

So here it is in all it's turquoise and pink. Oh my, right out of the fifties. Everything and I mean everything, from the ceiling to the lights, the swivel counter stools, the counter itself and of course the booths.  I'm not sure about the grill but I'll check that out the next time.  For a full five minutes, I couldn't stop looking around and taking it all in.  Do you know how rare this is, to find a piece of history still intact, and I was just so giddy about the color.  

So here we are in the only booth left.  I'm so happy we got this booth.  We are actually sitting in the front of the Streamliner. Our table is in the middle of the front end, hence the shape. So there we sat, next to each other, the perfect spot for great people watching, counter talking and dishes flying out from the kitchen and grill.  Check out the curtains, they look pretty original.  Well, I did check out the curtains and it was pretty sketchy up there.  I told Dina to have a look.  We could see daylight and a few other things we didn't recognize...LOL, so we just looked ahead.  We both had the homemade hash with eggs and it came with all the fixings...and my, my, it was so good.  We both got the clean plate award.

 

Check out the menu...the prices are very good for all that food.  I think we walked out of there for $20.00 and that included a good tip.  Honestly, the menu design is straight from the 50/60's also.  I wanted to take one home for old times sake but Dina wouldn't let me...

It was a special morning at the diner and although we were fascinated by the vintage feel of the place, there was also a sense of today there that you would not have found in the 60's. Kids still playing with their I-phones, and a take out order waiting to be picked up.  You can hold on to the past but the here and now is always present, as it should be I guess.  For me though, I loved being in a place that brought back the excitement of my youth, my high school years and talking to people who sat so close to us, eating their breakfast also and sharing our stories from the past.  

So you might ask, why was this my first trip here.  Why didn't we hang out here when we were young and this lovely diner was new.  It's simple, we had no car and we had no money.  This was not within walking distance to my house or my life.  It was very much out of the way.  Mostly though, back in my younger days, not many "regular people" went out for breakfast. Actually, we didn't go out to eat very much at all.  Only on special occasions.  As I look back now, I wonder where my Mom even got the money for those special dinners...that were eaten at noon time. By the way, noon time was dinner, five o'clock was supper.  Hmm, I wonder when that changed.  See what I mean, it brings back so much.  Even still, the times we did go out were lovely and remembered, even today.  Today, kids go out so much it's not special to them at all.  More routine.

So that's my story for today...What I know for sure is, I will go back.  I have to take Jim.  We will have a great breakfast and I know we will spend our time there sharing old stories..only the stories that him and I will understand and laugh about. I hope we get to sit in the same booth that Dina and I did.  If not for Yankee magazine last month I might not have made it here but I did and it was a wonderful trip down memory lane...one thing though, I do wish they had donuts and desserts.  No Pie.  Desserts are usually a highlight at most diners.  I'm not going to tell them that though...

"A poet could write volumes about diners, because they're so beautiful. They're brightly lit, with chrome and booths and Naugahyde and great waitresses. Now, it might not be so great in the health department, but I think diner food is really worth experiencing periodically."

David Lynch

Finding the Light

"You have to find what sparks a light 

in you so that you

in your own way,

can illuminate the whole world."

                           - Oprah Winfrey

The Crane's Estate At Castle Hill

Christmas on the Cape Ann coast of Massachusetts is beautiful and timeless, at least that's how it feels when we recently visited the Crane's Estate, all decked out in it's holiday finest.  The sun was shinning, the ocean was at the bottom of the hill, the sound of music and the scent of gingerbread filled the air. It was a grand day to get your Christmas mojo on.  Nothing was left undone and it was just magical...from the moment you stepped through the front door..

“Happy, happy Christmas, that can win us back to the delusions of our childish days; that can recall to the old man the pleasures of his youth; that can transport the sailor and the traveller, thousands of miles away, back to his own fire-side and his quiet home!”  Charles Dickens

The Crane's Estate is a property of the Trustee's of the Reservation.  I would really like to encourage you to visit any of their properties if you are fortunate to have a few in your area.  They are always beautiful kept and the grounds provide wonderful outdoor activities...even if it's only a walk along a coastal path...